Oscar Pistorius drunk before nightclub fight, partygoers claim

Aislinn Laing

Johannesburg: Oscar Pistorius, the Paralympian on trial for murdering girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, drank tequila shots, socialised with a known violent offender and had scantily-clad women sitting on his knee before the fight that led to him leaving a nightclub on Saturday night, it has been claimed.

The athlete confirmed he was at the VIP Room in the exclusive Johannesburg suburb of Sandton on Saturday night but denied being the cause of an altercation with racing driver and clothes store owner Jared Mortimer, saying Mr Mortimer had "aggressively engaged" him about his trial. Leo Pistorius, the athlete's uncle, said Mr Mortimer's version of events was "untrue".

Mr Mortimer claimed the athlete was introduced to him by a mutual friend named Guil Yahav, a former bouncer turned professional poker player who in 2002 admitted slashing another bouncer across the face with a knife shortly before he was murdered by other people.

Mr Mortimer said Pistorius prodded him aggressively in the chest during their conversation and was later involved in an argument with someone else, prompting bouncers to ask his group to leave.

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Another unnamed party-goer quoted by the Johannesburg Star newspaper said he witnessed the scuffle between Mr Mortimer and another "flat-out drunk" man he later identified as Pistorius as he passed him with a group of friends.

Meanwhile on Twitter, @aleshavr tweeted that Pistorius had "underdressed" women sitting on his lap at the VIP Room "on Sunday morning".

"Mr Mortimer, who has been unknown to Oscar and our family until he approached the press with his story of the so-called 'altercation' in which he has cast himself as the victim, is a man peddling untruths designed for maximum attention and maximum damage."

He said it was Mr Mortimer who was the aggressor, and that "eyewitnesses confirm this".

"Whilst Oscar venturing out into a public space with his cousin in the current climate and whilst his court case is still under way was unwise, those of us closest to him have been witness to his escalating sense of loneliness and alienation. This, we believe, is underlying some of his self-harming behaviour. As a family we are counselling Oscar to find ways of dealing with his feelings of isolation."

Pistorius' trial is adjourned before closing arguments, which are due next month, after which the judge will consider her verdict. He faces one charge of premeditated murder – the state alleges he shot Ms Steenkamp four times through a locked bathroom door at his Pretoria home after an argument, although he insists he believed she was an intruder.

He also faces two charges that he recklessly discharged a firearm in public – one charge relates to him shooting a friend's gun by accident in a crowded Johannesburg restaurant and another relates to him allegedly firing his gun through a car sunroof.

Mr Mortimer told the Star

he and Pistorius began talking about shared acquaintances.

"He started talking about some of my friends and he said he had statements and evidence that would get my friends into trouble. But he wouldn't use it because he wasn't that kind of person," Mr Mortimer was quoted as saying.

"He was drunk, but not bad. We were drinking tequila and I still remember putting down my drink and thinking I couldn't drink it while my friends were being spoken of like that." He said the athlete insulted a friend of his and he pushed him, prompting him to fall backwards into a chair.

"A little bit later he had a confrontation with another man and the bouncers were asked to please remove him because he was causing trouble," he added.

The Johannesburg Star newspaper said it had spoken to three other people who corroborated his allegations but asked to remain anonymous.

“We want the incident to go away – it was an unfortunate incident and I hope that it doesn’t occur again,” Brian Webber, a lawyer for Pistorius, said. Pistorius wasn’t in violation of his parole “that I’m aware of”, Mr Webber said.

The VIP Room and Pistorius' spokesman did not respond to requests for comment.